Factions
Royal House of Britain -The Royal Family of Britain presides over the aristocracy and citizenry of Britain. The English royal family is almost always at blows with either the Darkfael Empire (or, more directly, France) or the Scottish and Irish to their north. ' ' Royal House of Spain -The Royal Family of Britain presides over the aristocracy and citizenry of Spain and Portugal. ' ' Royal House of France -The Royal Family of Britain presides over the aristocracy and citizenry of France. They are secretly subjugate to the Darkfael Empire. ' ' The Order of the Dragon -The Order of the Dragon is an ambiguous group of humans, vampires, angels, and Dragon-kin composed in 1408 in Britain. Their original goals were little known to the public but it is known they often came to blows with Marruk Von Dalcas Dusknight Covenant. Currently they are seeking power elsewhere after the death of Marruk and subsequent abandonment of the Von Dalcas pursuit of power over southern Germany. ' ' The Von Dalca Family -The Von Dalca family is a major vampire coven that traces its bloodline through most of Eastern Europe and parts of East Asia for centuries. The current head of the House is Lukas Von Dalca; a vampire who is known by some to be at least two centuries old. The Von Dalcas gained prestige/relevance in society when it was learned that their “unused” wish was sealed into the blood of Marruk Von Dalca by Lukas after the Duskvale Tournament of 1410. Prior to this the Von Dalcas sieged and overtook a rather large castle in the frozen, northernmost reaches of Germany. It is from here, this island of fortitude, that they currently operate. ' ' The Black Hand -The Black Hand is an ambiguous mercenary group that claims the somewhat barbarous northern reaches of Germany as its haven. Their primary function is the harassment of Prussian rule and the elimination of targets who are believed to be attempting to gain entry into Duskvale. ' ' The Darkfael Empire -A growing Empire comprised of France, Hungary, and the Ukraine. The Darkfael Empire was founded by a group of lycanthropes in conjunction with several daemon warlords in 1400. It has come to be known as a formidable military power in the Duskvale world... with its generals and lords being some of the most feared people on the planet who are known for their cruelty. ' ' The Ottomans -A fledgling collection of kingdoms that most directly operate in Turkey. ' ' The Cult of Genevieve ' -The Cult of Genevieve is a group of religious fanatics forced from France by the rise of the Darkfael “heretics” into Poland in 1400. All members of the cult are devotedly pious and ferocious in battle. It is widely believed that the cultists have developed a religious ritual that allows them to ignore pain and heal major trauma for a short time during battle. ' ''' '''Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem (The Teutonic Knights) -The Teutonic Knights were originally an order of the German military upon foundation but have since become a purely religious military branch for the Orthodox Catholic church and the papacy. Many of the knights former members include heroes of the Crusades or other major military actions from medieval times. The Order itself has recently passed the height of its power and lost a major struggle at the Battle of Grunwald in 1410. More than eighty percent of the Order’s officers were lost on the field to the combined efforts of Polish-Lithuanian forces. Nevertheless, a recent peace treaty has allowed the Order to remain based at Malbork Castle in Malbork, Poland (The Order refers to it as Marienburg).